Weekend Warrior Weapons, Wild Side Edition - Eight Meta Staples and Thirty-Three Off-Meta Brews to Climb the Ladder With

Welcome, my friend! Welcome!

Step inside, please, and leave office quibbles behind. Friday's here, at last -- time for fun, a bit of risk, and fair fights!

So, what shall I furnish you with? Our fine selection, carefully curated from distinguished datamancers Balco and Legna, has everything from risky brews to the most potent Meta staples.

Would you like to…

… take a glimpse at the current Meta?

… peruse our Top Cut?

• Lulu Ahri, this week's challenger to the throne,
• Their Eternal Majesties, Ahri Kennen Shurima,
• Pantheon Taric, again near the top,
• Miss Fortune Quinn, aka Scouts, returned with a vengeance to among the strongest of the strong,
• The eternal stalkers, Ahri Kennen Shadows, who have now surpassed the Queen and King in popularity,

… maybe check other strong Meta Staples?

• Fizz Lulu, aka YiA, proving they are no fluke,
• Trundle Tryndamere Shadows, making a surprise return at near the top,
• Darkness,

… visit our newly-stocked Connoisseur's Corner?

• Jinx Poppy, a real rarity from the the Asia Pacific shard,
• Zed Poppy Rally, returned to relevance with nary a change in their old decklist,
• Zed Lulu Rally, another take reviving Rally Elusives,
• Jinx Legacy Poros, because why go Champless when you can go Jinx?
• Caitlyn Senna, a permission- and top-heavy deck,
• Kalista Elise, a mutation of Iceborn Spiders,
• Kindred Lux,
• Draven Jinx, a returned classic,

… or shall we take a walk on the wild side, and sample some of the many, many blends that prominent pilots are testing at the top?

• Zed Riven,
• Captain Lucian, one of this week's decks that attempt the Bannerman route,
• Supressin' Miss Fortune Poppy,
• Ziggs Zilean,
• Jayce Kindred Heimer,
• Frozen Bonds,
• Caitlyn Draven Tribeam,
• Sejuani Swain, because not decks showcase is complete without the Grand General,
• Azir Irelia Kennen,
• Kalista Viego, another take on the Matron Cithria combo,
• Garen Jarvan Elites, another Bannerman deck,
• Elise Fizz,
• Braum Swain Scargrounds, a very different take on the Scargrounds archetype,
• Noxus Teemo Burn,
• Elise Teemo Burn,
• Ezreal Teemo Burn,
• Aye, there seems to be a lot of interest in Burn!
• Spicy Scouts, ft. Jarvan,
• Bandle Brothers, ft. Rumble,
• Sivir Ziggs Noxurimaggro,
• Bandle Jinx Rumble,
• Lonesome BandleZaun Lulu,
• Lonesome Senna's Regrets,
• Yordle Rally, ft. Fizz, Tristana & Poppy,
• Ezreal Kennan,
• The Hairy Rose.

The Meta -- Still Waters Run Deep

At first glance, our formerly swingy Meta has now settled, like the tides, for a predictable pattern: a new deck, in this case Lulu Ahri, has risen to challenge Ahri Kennen's rule…

… while those that closely follow are the usual suspect, as they say.

Yet, in spite of most other faces among the top blends being fairly familiar, as Legna says in his last Monday's tweet (link):

The meta seems to be reaching a sort of stability even when using day-by-day playrates which is quite rare to see. At the same time the amount of new deckcodes I'm finding remain constant/high. 

In other words: there's indeed no shortage of experimentation and spicy blends to sample, my friend, if such is your wish, as I hope you shall let me show you!

And, as we'll see below, underneath the surface even the familiar faces at the top are undergoing some degree of refinement and fine-tuning.

A Cut Above the Rest -- 55% winrate or more, at Plat+

For those seeking power and confidence, these are the best of the best: tried and true Meta Staples, all with a playrate above 1% in Platinum and upper echelons -- leaving therefore little room for doubt about the accuracy of their performance -- and winrates that, by Riot's own definition, are in the "broken" range.

Lulu Ahri

The best performing archetype in the past three days, and with still room for tweaks, like whether or not to include Pix!.

Data strongly suggests that some form of counterspell, like Deny or Nopeify!, is a requirement.

Strong Against: Champless Poros, Elise Noxus, Kindred Viego, Draven Rumble

Struggles Against: Trundle Shadows builds, Anivia Shadows, slightly disfavored versus Ahri Kennen blends & Scouts

Their Royal Majesties, Ahri Kennen Shurima

More things swing, the more they stay the same -- although it is perhaps puzzling how stable this blend's playrate is, and how other lower-performing formulas are always preferred over it.

Interestingly, our Queen and King may not have reached their peak: the Sai'nen Thousand-Tailed variant, which data increasingly shows as superior (and therefore the one we currently suggest), is not yet the most popular.

Strong Against: Lurkers, Champless Poros, Pantheon Blends, Taliyah Ziggs, and the list goes on…

Struggles Against: Scouts, Elise Noxus Trundle Tryndamere, Pirates, Nightfall

Pantheon Taric Demacia

Taric has proven by now its permanence at the peak is no fluke.

And, like Ahri Kennen, this archetype's most popular list is not the best performer, hinting at potential for growth. Our suggested formula, which is the second most popular, makes a bit of room for Hush and an extra Bastion)

Strong Against: Scouts, Darkness, Champless Poros, Elise Trundle, Thralls, Akshan Sivir

Struggles Against: Ahri Kennen builds, Elise Noxus, Pantheon Shyvana, Fizz Lulu, Lee Sin Zoe, Lulu Zed Rally, Draven Jinx

Miss Fortune Quinn, aka Scouts

Yet again we find the same pattern: the Cithria the Bold variant, by far the most popular, may still be improved: Genevieve Elmheart, with a single copy of Riposte, seems to fare even better.

Strong Against: Ahri Kennen blends, Elise Noxus, Champless Poros, Pirates, Thralls

Struggles Against: Pantheon blends, Sentinel Control, Jayce Lux, Vladimir Braum

Ahri Kennen Shadows

Perhaps the most interesting bit of news at the top: the Shadows variant of the ruling Queen and King, while still trailing a few decimals behind in performance, has overtaken the Shurima variant when it comes to popularity -- perhaps partly thanks to Kevor's detailed guide (link), which he wrote after reaching and retaining Top #1 on the Americas leaderboard with this blend.

Strong Against: Lurkers, Taliyah Ziggs, Pantheon blends, Akshan Sivir, Heimer Jayce blends

Struggles Against: Scouts, Elise Noxus, Thralls, Nightfall

Other Strong Meta Staples -- above 53% winrate at Plat+

If none of the above blends are what you would call your cup of tea, my friend, then maybe these other powerful Meta Staples can fit the bill -- all of them likewise boasting a playrate of at least 1% in Platinum and above, so their potency is well-proven.

Any of these you take to the ladder, you can be assured you are bringing one of the best tools for the job

Fizz Lulu Bandlezaun, aka YiA

Perhaps the most refined archetype from among the Staples, with the most proficient blends only current disagreement being the exact number of Fizzs to bring.

Strong Against: Lurkers, Elise Noxus, Pantheon blends, Champless Poros, Kindred Viego, Taliyah Ziggs, Draven Rumble

Struggles Against: Darkness, Trundle Shadows blends, Kindred Sentinels

Trundle Tryndamere Shadows

Those that frequent our fine establishment will probably label this archetype's resurgence as the biggest -- even if mild, overall -- surprise: as of late, Trundle Tryndamere had been on the decline.

Its boosted performance seems to be linked to most blends cutting Commander Ledros, and either relying more heavily on spells, or bringing It That Stares into the mix.

Strong Against: Ahri Kennen blends, Elise Noxus, Draven Rumble, Pirates, Kindred Sentinels, Ahri Lulu

Struggles Against: Champless Poros, Kindred Viego, Taliyah Ziggs, Thralls

Veigar Senna, aka Darkness

Joining the trend of familiar faces willing to undergo a small facelift, this well-known archetype's best-performing blends are ditching Go Hard, to make room for Group Shot and sometimes a copy of The Rekindler.

Strong Against: Elise Noxus, Fizz Lulu, Pirates, Kindred Sentinels, Nightfall, Lee Sin Zoe

Struggles Against: Pantheon blends, Taliyah Ziggs, Thralls, Akshan Sivir, Jayce Lux

Other Considerations

There are of course several others very playable Meta Staples in the 50%-53% WR range, which we have chosen not to openly display lest the list becomes too long -- do drop me a comment, my friend, should any of the other well-known decks be your weapon of choice, and I shall furnish you with whatever information I possess.

Connoisseur's Corner

There's climbing.

And then there's climbing with flair.

All archetypes in our Connoisseur's Corner have at least two hundred games under their belt -- and sometimes quite a bit more -- in the Ladder's upper echelons, where they all boast winrates above 52%. If you are looking for weaponry that is well-tested yet little-known, look no further!

Jinx Poppy Discard Aggro

Ah, now this brew is truly a delicacy: a blend so rare that, until three days ago, only five players from across all shards were playing it at Masters.

And, two weeks ago, it was played solely and uniquely in the Asia Pacific server -- attentive readers may remember it being showcased by Leer and Wamuu as they shared with the world their notes (link) about their finds while rummaging Balco's Secret Single-Shard Stash.

So rare a blend, in fact, that you will not currently find matchup data for it from Legna or Balco, which would normally mean that we would list this brew in our Wild Side section…

… but, in this case, Wamuu was so in love with this idea that he took it for a wild romp in Masters, with rocketing success -- if you want to learn about this blend in depth, my friend, then Wamuu's guide (link) should do a better job than I ever will.

Zed Poppy Rally

Discarded and forgotten after innumerable nerfs, the ruthless rulers of the pre-Ahri era seem to have returned. The list is almost indistinguishable from the pre-nerf formula, giving credence to the rumor that mixing Rally with Elusives is never a losing proposition.

Strong Against: Pantheon Taric

Struggles Against: Lurkers, Scouts, slight disadvantage versus Darkness

Zed Lulu Rally

Another take to revive Rally Elusives -- all three shards currently show the exact list that we suggest as their most popular, which strongly implies that this archetype may rock the boat quite a bit next week.

Strong Against: Lurkers, Champless Poros, Pantheon Taric, Akshan Sivir

Struggles Against: Scouts, Trundle Shadows builds, Anivia Shadows

Jinx Legacy Poros

Champless Poros, but with less -less and more Jinx.

Surely that cannot possibly go wrong!

Strong Against: Darkness, Champless Poros, Freljord Shadows builds

Struggles Against: Ahri Kennen Shurima, Elise Noxus Scouts, Pantheon Shyvana

Caitlyn Senna

A permission-heavy, top-heavy deck, much more popular in the APAC shard than the others. Notice its good matchups into two of the strongest Meta Staples.

Strong Against: Ahri Kennen Shurima, Scouts, Elise Noxus

Struggles Against: Darkness, Lurkers

Frozen Kalista Elise

A mutation of the Iceborn Spiders archetype, with Kalista instead of Trundle and more spider synergy.

Strong Against: Elise Noxus, Kindred Viego, Ahri Kennen Shadows -- even into Scouts

Struggles Against: Champless Poros (a really bad matchup), Darkness, Ahri Kennen Shurima

Kindred Lux

Mostly an APAC-only blend until last week, this take on the Matron Cithria combo has now become widespread.

Here is a YouTube video (link) by prominent pilot freshlobster, with the ins and outs of this deck.

Strong Against: Pantheon Shyvana, Jayce Lux, Nightfall

Struggles Against: Ahri Kennen blends, Darkness, Elise Trundle, Anivia Shadows (horrible matchup)

Draven Jinx

It would seem these are good times for going wide -- and few blends do so faster than this old classic, somewhat forgotten after the arrival of Sion.

Strong Against: Elise Noxus, Pantheon blends, Champless Poros

Struggles Against: Darkness (horrible matchup), Ahri Kennen blends, Freljord Shadows Control blends

A Walk on the Wild Side

As Legna mentioned in his tweet, there is much to rejoice if you find little pleasure in a steady, predictable climb, and would rather run the risks of ranking with rare brews: the amount of experimental blends is staggering, to put it mildly.

All these below brews have but a few handful of games in the last few days -- while, according to the data, they all performed grandly at Platinum and above, the small sample size makes these claims somewhat shaky. Anything from blind luck to ungodly piloting skills could skew the results, therefore our usual two Wild Side caveats apply here: pilots beware, and no guts no glory!

Zed Riven

A Riven blend, as tradition demands; not ideal against Scouts and Ahri Kennen Shurima, but boasting extremely high winrates.

Captain Lucian 

An all-Demacia blend, save for the Yordle Captain making everything bigger.

Supressin' Miss Fortune Poppy 

A take on Scouts, with Poppy and Stony Suppressor into the mix. Do notice it loses to the standard Scouts deck.

Strong Against: Darkness, Ahri Kennen blends, Champless Poros, Draven Rumble, Pirates

Struggles Against: Scouts, Lurkers, Pantheon blends (really bad matchups), Elise Trundle

Ziggs Zilean 

You want Landmarks? We've got Landmarks -- aggressively so.

Jayce Kindred Heimerdinger

A slight variation of Jayce Heimer Shadows, which has grown a bit in popularity as of late.

Frozen Bonds 

Draven and Darius, on the rocks.

Strong Against: Darkness, Taliyah Ziggs

Struggles Against: Scouts, Lurkers, Ahri Kennen blends, Pantheon Taric, Fizz Lulu 

Caitlyn Draven Tribeam

A fairly old archetype that seems to have sparked renewed interest as of late.

Strong Against: Elise Noxus, Pantheon Shyvana -- slight edge versus Lurkers and Scouts

Struggles Against: Darkness, Ahri Kennen blends (horrible matchup)

Sejuani Swain

As with Riven, no showcase of decks can call itself complete until the Grand General shows up.

Strong Against: Darkness, Scouts

Struggles Against: Lurkers

Azir Irelia Kennen

A single list from APAC, which usually denotes a single mind behind it.

Kalista Viego 

Another take, mostly played in Europe, for the Matron Cithria combo

Garen Jarvan Elites

An APAC exclusive, a nearly mono-Demacia blend focusing on the Elites synergy.

Strong Against: Even versus Scouts

Struggles Against: Champless Poros and Ahri Kennen Shurima

Elise Fizz

A single-list blend from Americas, relying on early aggression and Doombeast burn.

Braum Swain Scargrounds

An interesting take, that ditches most units usually associated with the Scargrounds archetype -- including one of its Champions, Vladimir -- and instead opts for a more Control-oriented path along a variety of board clears.

Strong Against: Scouts, Elise Noxus -- slight edge versus Ahri Kennen Shurima

Struggles Against: Lurkers, Pantheon Shyvana, Darkness

Noxus Teemo Burn

There seems to be a keen interest in the very old Teemo Burn package -- this is one of the results, and the closest to the classic Noxus Burn formula.

Strong Against: Ahri Kennen Shurima, Champless Poros, Pantheon blends

Struggles Against: Scouts,  Darkness, Elise Noxus

 

Elise Teemo Sump Burn

An experiment going in a similar direction, but using the Shadows burn package, along with its capacity to copy units.

Ezreal Teemo Burn

A slower form of NoxZaun burn, now with the somewhat forgotten Ezreal 

Spicy Scouts, ft Jarvan

Yet another take on Scouts, featuring Jarvan -- and which is slightly favored versus the standard Scouts version.

Bandle Brothers, ft. Rumble

Bandle Noxus Discard never quite became a thing -- perhaps this brotherly bond can make it work?

Sivir Ziggs Noxurimaggro

Back in the Dark Age of Azirelia, it was actually a (very different) version of Noxus Shurima aggro which had the highest winrate among Meta Staples. Champions and some followers have changed, but this archetype's trio of spells make all the difference when the game is about reach.

Strong Against: Lurkers, Ahri Kennen Shurima

Struggles Against: Scouts, Darkness

Bandle Jinx Rumble

A mostly Americas-shard take on BandleZaun Discard.

Lonesome BandleZaun Lulu

A somewhat similar take on BandleZaun Discard, in this case a single-list blend from the EU shard:

Lonesome Senna's Regrets

A single-list blend from the Americas shard, with a fan favorite: Catalogue of Regrets.

Yordle Rally, ft. Fizz, Tristana & Poppy:

Go wide and big, or go home!

Ezreal Kennen

This archetype is half of the reason for the only balance hotfix in LoR's history thus far. At least one very skilled Master pilot thinks it's still capable of winning a lot.

Hairy Rose

By now a staple of this section: from time to time, the Rose pairs with a band of yetis to wreak havoc in the ladder, usually to disappear the following week like a myth nobody believes in.

And so, my friend!

I would not be honest if I were to say that I would not be crestfallen if you were to find our selection lacking, so I do hope that is not the case.

Should you require more data to make up your mind, or perhaps inquiry about a specific archetype we did not list today, by all means do let me know -- feel free to poke me on Twitter (@HerkoKerghans), or you can find more recommendations and writings here (link).

Good luck, and fair fights!